Nightmares
by pachirisu
Summary: Gray isn't coping as well as he'd like to admit. But what about Juvia? She hasn't had it easy either. Rated T to be safe. Set after the rebuilding of Fairy Tail. Gruvia.
1. Chapter 1

Gray mused over the request board. He needed to go on a job soon- his rent was due, and the last few jobs he'd been on hadn't quite had enough money going for them. One job stuck out to him- situated in the East, and all he had to do was defeat a few monsters that had been terrorizing the small village. He unpinned it, reading the exact details more specifically. It seemed like a job he could do easily on his own- that was, until he reached the last point. It stated that the monsters were fire monsters, and the only job could only been taken by a group of at least two wizards- one of water, and one of ice. He rolled his eyes- he knew exactly who he would have to take along with him for his job. He took it to Mirajane, setting it down on the wooden bar.

"You're in early today, Gray!"

"I need to take a job, so I'm here to get one and leave. I'll take this one, but I need Juvia to come with me. Have you seen her?"

"She usually comes in about now. She'll be here soon! Take a seat while you wait."

A few minutes passed, and the blue haired girl entered, shocked to see Gray there. Usually he arrived a good few hours after she did, so his mere presence threw her off.

"Good morning, Gray-sama!" She managed, stumbling past him to sit in her usual spot.

"Wait, Juvia. Are you busy today?"

"Is this Gray-sama's way of confessing?" Juvia asked, mind clearly running off into her usual fantasies. Gray rolled his eyes- he had walked straight into that one.

"No. Do you want to go on a job with me? This one specifically requests two mages, and they need to be able to defeat fire monsters 'with ease', apparently. As we're the only two mages in Fairy Tail that fit that, I was wondering…"

"Of course Juvia will go with you!" He didn't even get to finish his sentence before she agreed, wrapping her arms around him. He gently peeled her off, motioning towards the door with his head. He took a few steps, and she followed closely behind. They passed Natsu on the way out the door, who stooped Gray.

"Where are you going?"

"Job." Gray wasn't one for words, but luckily this time, many words weren't needed.

"And why are you going with _her_?" He pointed at Juvia, who scuttled back a few steps. "You're supposed to be in my team! Me and you, Happy, Erza, Lucy! We're a team!"

"Not really. We just end up stuck together, flame brain."  
"Fine. Go, then." Natsu pouted, mumbling something to Happy. Gray heard the always audible 'he liiiiiikes her' from Happy, and cursed the flying cat's entire existence.

The pair walked through Magnolia, Gray a few steps in front, and Juvia skipping along happily behind. They got plenty of strange looks from the town's citizens. It was mid October, with the sun scorching down on the streets. Gray was wearing his usual shirt, hands in his pockets, head down. He was followed by the usually optimistically Juvia: winter coat and hat, smiling at everyone who walked by.

"Juvia."

"Yes, Gray-sama?"

"Walk beside me. You're giving me bad nerves, skipping like that."

"Okay." She sped up for a few paces, falling into step beside him. The two didn't talk much- Juvia didn't know what to say, and Gray didn't have anything to say. The pair made it to the train in no time, boarding the train bound for Cedar, the town where the job's client was. In some ways, Gray was glad he'd gone with Juvia- it meant he wouldn't have to deal with Natsu being sick the whole way.

The train departed after five minutes, quickly leaving Magnolia a speck in the distance. A trolley containing food came through, carrying hot drinks.

"Do you want anything?" Gray asked, making Juvia sit up straight in her seat. Clearly she had been daydreaming before that, but she didn't have the usual expression Gray was used to seeing when her dreams were about him.

"Um… Juvia will have a tea, please, Gray-sama."

He ordered a tea for her and a coffee for himself, handing over the needed jewel to the man pushing the trolley. He handed the cardboard cup to Juvia, warning her not to spill it. She was still silent while drinking her tea, staring out the window at the green countryside rushing by.

"Oi, Juvia. Are you okay?"

"Ah- yes, Juvia is fine. She was just thinking about being on a job with Gray-sama. Usually she only goes on her own or with Gajeel-kun, so it's fun being able to be out with someone else for a change." She smiled brightly, a light pink blush dusting her cheeks.

He was about to tell her not to get used to it, but she looked so happy, and he didn't have the heart to say anything negative. Instead, he agreed, with a simple 'yeah.'

"You know, you're a much better travel companion than Erza, Lucy and Natsu. Natsu gets really motion sick, and can barely move. Erza usually ends up knocking him out, and Lucy doesn't help the situation at all."

"Juvia thinks they sound like a fun group to travel with." She brought her hand up to her mouth, giggling ever so slightly.

"They're really annoying, more like." He rolled his eyes again- finally noticing this was something he kept doing. He folded his arms and crossed his legs, attempting to come up with a conversation to break the silence. Usually Juvia was good at conversations, but today, she seemed distant. Maybe she was just trying to contain her excitement over the prospect of going on a job with Gray?

They arrived in the small costal town of Cedar a few hours later, after many awkward attempts at conversation, and many more cups of coffee. Rain drizzled down on the town, which Gray only noticed after departing the train. It was a warm, unnatural type of rain, and he could only assume it was coming from Juvia. She had got off the train in front of him, and was standing at the door out of the station. He noticed her gently hit her face, as if she was trying to slap sense into herself. She perked up immediately after this, waving to Gray.

"Gray-sama! Let's go!"

They walked through the town, and eventually the rain ceased to fall. The house where the client lived seemed to be miles away, at the other end of the town. The sun was already threatening to set in the distance, and the two mages had only just arrived at their destination. Gray knocked on the door, which was almost immediately answered by a woman in her sixties. She invited them in, sitting them down in the living room.

"You're from Fairy Tail, correct?" The woman was joined by a man of the same age, who sat down on a seat opposite.

"Yes. You've got a job for us?"

"Just outside the town, there is a nest of monsters. Once a week, they attack the village. They seem to breathe fire, or something, because buildings always end up being burned to the ground. They have a leader, who I have seen while trying to find them, however he never seems to attack." The old man knotted his hands on his knees. "I'm just afraid that if that leader ever does attack, we'll all die. The town could be completely destroyed, and we'll have nowhere to go…"

"I know this is a problem, and all," Gray interrupted, and three heads turned to him in shock, "but isn't this that town that that guy Dan Straight or something was from?" He directed this point to Juvia, who nodded in confusion. "Exactly. So why don't you just get those knights to solve the problem, instead of posting this on request boards in guilds around the country?"

"Believe me, son, we've tried. But the knights want nothing to do with the monsters. I honestly think they're afraid. So that's why we requested wizards to come and sort this out, once and for all."

"Well, we'll do it. I just wanted to know. We'll start tomorrow- it's too dark to work like this."

"Fair enough. We'll pay you two to stay in the hotel in town. It's nice, don't you worry."

Juvia stood by the door with the woman, while the old man phoned the hotel and told Gray how to get there. It really had got dark- the street lamps had come on, and the stars were clearly visible in the black sky.

"It's nice to see a young couple taking jobs together! Usually we just see solo wizards or large groups out." Juvia's face flushed a deep red, and the old lady looked at her in shock.

"Ah, w-we're not a couple, ma'am," she stuttered, trying to make it obvious that they were _not_ together (even if it was what Juvia wanted).

"Oh! Pardon me, dear. I'm sorry, I just assumed…"

"We're in the same guild, and we're on the job because they types of magic we use match up well with the monsters. Juvia is a water mage, and Gray-sama uses Ice magic!" Gray walked through to the hall as she finished her sentence.

"Are you ready to go?" He asked, and she nodded enthusiastically. The two said their goodbyes to the old couple, walking into the town. Gray directed her to the hotel, where they checked in right away.

"I have a reservation for a room? Under the name Fullbuster." The man at reception took Gray's money, handing him a key in return. Gray motioned with his head to the stairs, and Juvia followed him up to the third floor, where their room was. Gray unlocked the door, and he and Juvia were greeted with a daunting obstacle: there was only one bed. Gray's 'gentlemanly instincts' kicked in straight away.

"You can take the bed."

"No thank you, Gray-sama. Juvia would rather sleep on the sofa. She thinks it would be more comfortable for Gray-sama on the bed."

"No. You have to." Erza would kill him if she found out that he had allowed Juvia to sleep on the sofa while he had selfishly taken the bed. But Juvia didn't care about what he was insisting, and had somehow procured a blanket and a pillow from a small cupboard on the wall.

"Juvia insists. She's quite tired also, so she will go get changed in the bathroom. No peeking, Gray-sama!"

"I-I wasn't planning to!" But his words fell into the air, her having skipped away already. She reappeared minutes later, long hair plaited down her back, wearing baby blue Pyjamas.

"Gray-sama should get some sleep too. We have to be up early to fight those monsters tomorrow." She cocooned herself in the blankets, facing the back of the sofa. "Goodnight, Gray-sama." He stood for a moment, shocked at how quickly she had readied herself for the night. It took him that moment to respond.

"Yeah. Goodnight."

He took his shirt and trousers off, falling into bed quickly. He faced the wall, away from Juvia. He was genuinely surprised that the girl hadn't tried to get into bed with him, but maybe she had _finally_ decided to heed what he had harshly told her at the Grand Magic Games. Maybe she was giving him space. Whatever had made her decide this, it didn't matter. Gray rolled onto his back, closing his eyes and waiting for sleep to take him.

* * *

 **AN: I recently finished Fairy Tail and I have way too many emotions about these nerds. Please review, tell me what you think! This is obviously my first Fairy Tail fanfic and I'm kinda unsure about it.**


	2. Chapter 2

_It is snowing. It always is in the northern most stretches of Fiore. He walks through the snow, it crunching under his feet. The air is cold and crisp, burning at his face. His pulls his scarf closer to face, zipping his coat up and trudging the last few metres into his home. His parents greet him happily, placing steaming plates of food on the table, smiling, sitting, eating. It was perfect._

 _The scene soon changes, and there is a yell from outside. It's that boy from a few houses down the street. He looks distraught, and is yelling about a monster. Gray scoffs. There are no monsters. But he's wrong. Oh so wrong. When he and his parents leave the house, they see that half the mountainside village is on fire. Lyon is crying- he hasn't seen his parents. They said they were coming, he complains. Gray's parents tell him to run. They don't know if there is a monster or not. No one can see anything from the blizzard that is engulfing the town. Lyon is still sobbing quietly. Gray thinks he needs to man up, but he is just as scared himself. He bravely takes the other boy by the wrist, and runs, despite his many complaints. Lyon's feet somehow manage to keep up, and then they're miles away, up the mountain._

 _They can see the entire town from here. Lyon is still sniveling, but Gray looks over the cliff edge at the village below. And then he sees it. The snow. It's no longer the pure white it usually is, but instead it's dyed red. Most of the village has been massacred, but Gray can't see this monster everyone is talking of. But then he strains his eyes, and in the distance, walking away, is a monster. It's not just a monster, though. It's twenty, no thirty feet tall. Gray can't quite tell how big it is, but it's_ huge _. It looks like a cross between a bird and a human, and all he wants to do is run after it and kill it. But he can't. Even if he had any way of killing it, his body won't let him move. His feet are rooted into the snow, and he can feel his tears freezing on his cheeks._

 _The town is ablaze, and they are the standing on the mountainside, unable to help anyone who may still be alive down there. The monster is moving away, and Gray decides if they move quietly, it may not come back. It's far enough away when he pulls Lyon to his feet and they trek down the snowy path they came up, following their own footprints. Gray can't bear to go into his house. It's charred; the snow has put out most of the fires. He finds his parents in the middle of the town. Lyon can't find his family, but Gray tells him it's for the better._

 _They leave the town, deciding between them that they're going to do something about the monster. They find a teacher. Her name is Ur. She teaches them Ice magic. Gray isn't very good at it (or so he thinks). He makes swords, cages, and he can freeze the river with ease. But Lyon is amazing. He can make birds, mice, cats, and once he even pulled off a tiger. Ur is like a mother to them both. She has no children of her own- well she did, but her daughter died a while ago. She treats them like her own children._

 _She tells them about the monster. It's not a monster, which is a shock to both boys. It's a demon. It's immensely strong, and has destroyed many villages along the northern continent. Apparently it's been around for roughly 400 years, but it has only started its reign of terror recently. It's called Deliora, and Gray commits that name to memory. Both Gray and Lyon swear to perfect Ice Make Magic. They will defeat Deliora_

 _Gray starts to garner a dislike for Lyon. He becomes obsessed with this demon. He learns abnormal amounts of magic in a short period of time. He spends all of his spare time reading; reading books about magic. He stops talking to Gray and Ur. They worry about him, but he ignores their concerns, and decides to perfect his magic. On his own._

 _News travels fast in the mountains, surprisingly, and Gray and Lyon are shocked to hear about the return of Deliora, a few towns over. It killed at least twenty people, and the painful reminder of their families' deaths strikes a nerve within the two boys. Ur warns them not to do anything rash, but Gray ignores her, running out of the house and running and running and running until he reaches the village. He sees Deliora. It's just as big as he thought it was when he first saw it, all those months ago._

 _He's about to attack it, but Lyon appears, ready to go first, he pushes him back, saying he's ready to finish Deliora off. He stands in a way Gray has never seen anyone stand for casting magic before. His feet are wide apart, his shoulders high and his arms crossed in an 'x' shape in front of him. The ground starts to glow, and Gray has no idea what's happening._

 _As soon as he opens his mouth to speak, there is a flash of blue from behind them, and Lyon is frozen solid. Ur has come too. She explains that Lyon was trying to use a spell called Iced Shell, and that it killed the person who used it. She explains that it is the only way to kill Deliora and save all these people on the Northern Continent. She explains that she will seal away Gray's darkness. Gray feels tears running down his cheeks. He's not sure when he started crying. He yells at Ur. Don't do it. Stop. There must be another way. But she simply smiles, that soft, motherly smile Gray and Lyon have grown to love. She takes up the position that Lyon was in only a few moments in, and the ground glows again._

 _It's much stronger this time, the light, and Gray guesses it's because she has at least twenty times the magical power of Lyon. He's still yelling; he can't let her die, not under any circumstance. But it's too late. The Deliora stops, as if frozen completely. Huge chunks of ice slowly envelop it. And the light gets brighter, and his voice gets louder, and the Deliora gets more and more frozen. And then the light fades, and Ur is gone, and the Deliora is completely frozen and he's screaming and he's screaming and he's screaming and he's screaming and he's screaming and he's screaming-_

He woke up and he was screaming. He quickly realised what he was doing, and clasped his hands over his mouth. He was sweating and had sat bolt upright when he awoke from whatever that was. The blankets were screwed up in a ball at the end of the bed, and he hears a rustling from the other side of the room. Oh dear.

"Gray-sama!" She whispers, loudly enough for him to hear perfectly. Her voice is muffled from her blanket nest, but she turned to look at him, swinging her legs onto the carpeted floor.

"No. Stay where you are. I'm fine." He looked at her, and she can barely see him through the dark, but his hair was messier than usual and his eyes were wide.

"Are you-"

"I'm okay." His voice was shaking, but she complies, curling back up on the sofa.

"Alright… um, goodnight, Gray-sama." He grunted in response.

He was too afraid to go back to sleep after that. Deliora was always at the forefront of his mind, and even though he knew it was dead, it played a prominent role in his dreams. He rolled over to face Juvia. Her back was to him, and her breathing steady, so must have fallen asleep again. He wondered if she ever had dreams like that. He knew Natsu occasionally woke up sweating after a dream about Igneel, but he didn't know about anyone else. He knew Juvia hadn't had it easy- Phantom Lord had pretty much used her for a good few years of her life.

His mind wandered to his other guild mates. None of them had had a particularly good start to life. Erza lived in that 'tower of heaven', and had spent a long time being abused by Jellal. Lucy's mother had died when she was young, and her father wasn't the kindest to her. He hadn't really talked to anyone else in the guild; he didn't want to be classified as being nosy.

Rolling onto his back again, Gray made a mental note to apologize to Juvia in the morning about waking her up. He thought it best he tried to get some more sleep- they would have no chance of succeeding in their mission if he was half asleep. His eyes shut almost immediately after this thought had processed, and sleep overcame him, proving how tired he actually was.

 _The next dream is different. He knows it's a dream from the moment it begins, but he can't wake up, no matter how hard he wishes. He's enclosed in a white space. It's all he can see, seemingly for miles. He can't move forward, backwards, or to either side. He can turn though, and when he hears his name whispered from behind him, he has to turn, to see who is calling him._

 _It's Ultear. Her hair is whipping around the air, in some sort of wind that isn't affecting Gray at all. But hey, this is a dream, so anything goes. She, along with him, he notices, is floating in mid air. Her hands are clasped in front of her, almost as if she's praying. Gray tries to reach out to her, his hand closing over thin air as she seemingly moves backwards. He tries to move forward, so he can talk to her. But he's rooted to the spot. And she looks like she's in pain. Her eyes are brimming full of tears, and her eyes are furrowed together._

 _Her mouth opens slowly, as if she's trying to form words. He hears her- it's quiet, but there is no other sound, so if he strains his ears, he can hear it just as clearly as any words._

 _Gray._

 _She's calling him. But it's less of a command, and more of an apology. Her voice seems shaky, and then he can't hear her. It's like the dream has cancelled out whatever she was going to say, replacing it with a high-pitched squeak. He tries to read her lips, but she's turned away from him and is facing the sky. She sinks to her knees, covering her face in her hands. Is she crying? And then he gets a sudden flash in front of him. He's dying. Shot. Through the heart, and the head. Robots? No, dragons. They're everywhere. People are screaming. Is that Lyon? And he just saved Juvia? But… he's not dead._

 _And then Ultear is gone. He tries calling out, but he can't see her. And then everything slips into place. She did sacrifice herself, for that extra minute. He was right. That old woman was her. She had given up everything for them. For humanity._

When Gray woke up again, his cheeks were sticky with tears. There was a damp mark on the sheets, and he shook his head. Light was streaming through the window, and when he pushed himself up, he saw that Juvia was gone. The bathroom door was open, so he assumed she had gone down to breakfast alone. He joined her after a few minutes, whispering 'thank you's to Ultear as he made his way downstairs.

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 **AN: Thank you for the reviews. As to the fast pacing, that was pretty much intentional, as there will be a few chapters like this, where nothing much happens. I guess. Please review, it makes everything a lot easier!**


	3. Chapter 3

Gray spotted Juvia easily once he made it downstairs- her cobalt hair stood out among the other people dining in the room. She was by the breakfast table, piling her plate with fancy looking pastries, a cup of earl grey tea in her hand. She waved over once she caught sight of him standing in the doorway, hair still messy from the night before. He made his way over to her, lifting a plate from the stack at the end of the buffet.

"Morning," he offered, setting toast, fried eggs and bacon onto the piece of ceramic.

"Good morning, Gray-sama." She was smiling, which he deemed unusual after what had happened the night before. He put it down to politeness- she didn't want to pry. He poured himself a cup of coffee from the jug on the counter, motioning to a table near the back of the room with his head. The two ate in silence, and it was only when Gray had finished his toast did he make an attempt at conversation.

"Uh. I'm sorry about last night. For yelling at you. I just… yeah. Sorry." He stared at his empty plate, not wanting to make eye contact with the girl.

"It's okay. Juvia knows Gray-sama is not good at talking about his feelings. But Juvia understands, don't worry." She smiled reassuringly, finishing her tea. "We should get going soon. Is Gray-sama ready?"

"Yeah. Let's go."

He led the way out of the restaurant and into the lobby, where they discussed their plan. It was simple, really. The old man had pointed out where the monster's nest was- four hundred metres maybe from the house. It would take them twenty minutes to get there from the hotel, and then maybe two hours to fight and kill all the monsters. Confident in their plan, the two left to hotel, trudging up the hill to the client's house. Instead of going in, they walked around the side, through the regal looking garden and out the back.

They entered what was supposed to be a lush forest. Except for the fact that it… wasn't. There were a few lines of trees at the edge of the forest, but everything past that was burnt to a crisp and dead as far as the eye could see. The trees stood still, and there wasn't a noise from any part of the forest. Gray strained his eyes too look in the distance, where the destruction seemed to continue on, just as bad.

"I don't like this. We should find the nest as soon as possible." Juvia nodded in agreement, and the mages headed deeper into the forest. Gray was right- there was a sense of foreboding in the air, and both wizards could feel the intense magic energy coming off from the forest itself. Dead leaves crunched under their feet, creating the soundtrack to their mission. They reached a clearing in the trees; it looked as though the monsters had been here, and recently. The surrounding trees were warm to the touch, and some of the foliage on the ground was still smoking. Embers from a recent fire were scattered over the forest floor, and the air felt thick.

"The monsters have been here, Gray-sama. They can't be far from here," Juvia spoke up, mirroring Gray's thoughts.

"Exactly what I thought. If they moved from here, they can't have moved far, since the fire hasn't completely gone out." Gray went to walk forward, but Juvia threw her arm out, stopping him in his tracks.

"What the hell, Juvia?! That really-"

"Ssh. I can hear something."

The two stood silently for a moment. Juvia was right; there was something coming their way. The bluenette turned her head to the left, to see a shadowy figure approaching. Neither of the pair could make out exactly who or what it was, so they stayed in their frozen positions, waiting for it to come closer. As it neared, Juvia could tell it wasn't human. It walked slumped over; it's hands scraping along the crisp leaves covering the ground.

"It's a Vulcan? The monster is a Vulcan. Well, we can deal with these, right?"

"Wait, Gray-sama. It might be something else. Juvia doesn't think Vulcans have the ability to breathe It stopped ten feet away from them, a confused expression plastered on it's face. fire."

They watched the monster longer as it came closer. It smiled, realizing they were people, jumping up and down on the spot. Both mages moved, creating defensive positions, ready to attack if necessary. The Vulcan took a step backwards, putting it's weight onto it's front foot. It then reared back, throwing it's head back and spewing fire into the sky.

"Juvia has been proven wrong," the water mage cried, firing a Water Lock at the monster to cut off the fire. "Juvia will cut off the oxygen slowly. It will be quicker than using all out attacks."

"I didn't think any type of Vulcan could use fire attacks. This is new to me. And why do you think he fired the attack into the sky rather than at us?"

"Juvia reckons it was a signal. It was informing the others that we're here. Get ready to attack, Gray-sama!"

They faced opposite directions, standing beside each other. Juvia was correct this time- soon after, hordes of Vulcans appeared from all directions. Attacks were fired from both mages; ice lining one side of the forest, and water soaking the other. Any attacks that Juvia didn't manage to dispel went through her water body, and Gray had his 'Ice Make: Wall' to help him out. Within minutes of the creatures appearing, their dead forms were covering the forest floor, and Juvia and Gray stood in the middle of the circle of bodies, relatively unscathed.

"That was too easy…" Gray said, putting one hand in his pocket. He hadn't even taken his shirt off, which was really proof of the level of difficulty.

"Juvia agrees. She thinks we haven't beaten their king yet."

"We'll have to find their nest, like what was our original plan. He'll be in there." Gray started walking in the direction the main body of the Vulcan force came from, Juvia following closely behind him.

They left the clearing, travelling further into the forest. There were more burnt trees here than on their way to the clearing, which confirmed Gray's suspicions. They were definitely heading in the right direction. After a few minutes of walking in silence, Juvia spoke up.

"Do you think that's it?" She pointed at a tree at little to the left of the main path they were walking along. It was noticeably larger than some of the others, and didn't to seem to be as burnt. There seemed to be an opening at the bottom that led into the ground, which Juvia immediately went over to investigate. Gray looked on, a worried expression painted clearly upon his features.

"Hey, Juvia, be careful. You don't want to fall down." Juvia whipped around at this comment, eyes big, and a grin stretching across her face.

"Ah, is Gray-sama worried about Juvia?" Her voice had a singsong tone to it, and she looked happier than she had the whole trip so far.

"Ugh. Of course I'm worried about you. I don't want you getting hurt, like I wouldn't want any of the guild members getting hurt."

"That's good enough for Juvia!" Her smile dropped suddenly, replaced with a sombre look. "We do need to go down there though. Juvia is certain the main Vulcan will be somewhere in under the tree."

With a nod of approval of Gray, she slid down the gap between the tree and the ground, and into a tunnel under it. She crouched for a few steps, not wanting to crawl along the ground. But when she looked up, she saw that there was enough room to stand, and she stood up slowly. Gray slid down into the tunnel seconds later, landing with a sigh at the bottom of the ramp.

"It's like a labyrinth. I can't tell which way to go," he complained, dusting the loose soil off his jeans

"What about straight ahead. We can always turn back if it's the wrong way," Juvia suggested, and Gray complied, taking off to the tunnel straight ahead of them. It was dark, and muddy, but the two mages managed to fell their way along the length of the tunnel until they reached a large room at the end.

It was artificially lit with torches of fire hung on the walls in equal increments. They cast a warm orange glow around the whole room, allowing Gray and Juvia to properly survey their surroundings. Their target was seated in the middle of the room; the Vulcan King. He was at least twice the size of a regular Vulcan, and that alone made him a formidable opponent. Combined with his fire powers, which the Fairy Tail mages honestly didn't know much about, they were worried about fighting him.

"We're not here to talk!" Gray called out, eliciting a glare from the king. "We've taken out all your 'subjects', and we're here to kill you too!"

"Gray-sama, don't you think that's too much? Surely we can merely rough him up a little…'

"The job said take him down, Juvia. We have to do as described, or we won't get our reward."

The Vulcan King clambered to his feet, using all the walls to help himself up. Juvia was the first to react, sending a Water Slicer to his ankles to immobilize him. He cried out in pain, but still managed to send an attack back at Juvia. She allowed the attack to go straight through her Water Body, and was completely unharmed. It was Gray's turn next. He had stripped off his shirt by this point, and Juvia had to mentally tell herself not to get distracted. This was an important fight, after all.

"Ice Make: Geyser!" He yelled, launching the attack at the Vulcan. It hit, making contact and freezing the creature's arm solid. The ice encasing the king's fist was melted easily, and he swung at Gray. The ice mage ducked just in time, allowing his partner to make another clean attack from behind.

"Water Cannon!" This attack was much more successful than Juvia's previous attempt, and made the Vulcan King curl up in pain while Gray and Juvia regrouped near the tunnel they entered from.

"Any ideas?" Gray inquired. Juvia didn't answer for a moment, deep in thought. Her eyes scanned the room, taking in the amount of space, the entrances and exits, and the torches placed on the walls. Gray cleared his throat, and Juvia snapped to attention. She sucked in her breath before explaining.

"Yes, actually. If Juvia can extinguish all the torches, he won't be able to see. Then Gray-sama can use one of his stronger attacks on him, bringing both literally and metaphorically to his knees."

"I like the idea, but if we put out the lights, then we won't be able to see either, right?" Gray pointed out kindly, but Juvia shook her head.

"We can get accustomed to the dark, so after thirty seconds it won't be a problem and we will be able to fight as normal. The Vulcan race however, has notoriously bad vision, so he won't be able to attack us. Well…. hopefully."

"Brilliant," Gray smiled, "Go for it. How are we gonna put the torches out, though?"

"Like this." Juvia held her hands up in front of her, and started to channel all her energy into one spot. This attracted the attention of the Vulcan, who looked up in curiosity. "Wings of Love! This attack is for you, Gray-sama!"

He glared at her, but her attack was successful, allowing all the torches to be extinguished in one move. It also soaked the Vulcan in the process, which made Gray's job much easier.

"Ice Make: Cold Excalibur!" He sliced the Vulcan's head off in one swift movement, allowing it's body to crash to the ground. However, as he did this, there was a scream. And that scream belonged to Juvia. He jumped down from the body of the dead creature to see Juvia, lying on the ground, covered in her own blood.

"I'm sorry, Gray-sama…"


	4. Chapter 4

Horror struck Gray like a freight train as he saw Juvia lying on the ground. She had been a while away from the monster- no harm should've come to her, and Gray had successfully slayed the beast. So how had this happened? Gray closed his eyes, opening them again to check if he was seeing things. But he wasn't. No, Juvia was definitely there. And she was definitely dying.

The ice mage ran over to the girl, whose breathing was shallow. She writhed in pain, attempting the stop the blood with her hands.

"Juvia!" Gray picked up his discarded shirt on the way over to her. "What happened to you?"

"W-when the monster fell… it cut me with it's claw. We had done so well… but the cut is deep. There's no way Juvia will be able to survive this one…"

"What about your Water Body? Shouldn't it have gone straight through?" Gray's voice was frantic; trying to figure put exactly how this situation had occurred.

"Juvia's Water Body can only activate if she's thinking about it. And if there's a surprise attack… Juvia is useless." The water mage attempted to lift her head, smiling sadly at Gray. "This is Juvia's fault anyway… she wasn't sure if Gray-sama could handle the monster on his own, so she moved in to help. If she hadn't got so close, this wouldn't have happened."

"Juvia… this isn't your fault. It's mine. I should've been paying more attention. Now. Move your hands. I'm going to try and heal you." He gently lifted Juvia's hands off her stomach, unbuttoning her coat. Needless to say, he felt awkward doing this, but Juvia was too out of it to have any fangirl fantasies. He moved her top up, baring her stomach, and the wound. It was long, and deep, just as Juvia had described it. He took his shirt, using the sleeve to wipe away some of the blood. Juvia made a quiet squeaking noise and winced in pain as he did so, and gray made a mental note to apologise to her later.

He pressed the shirt onto the wound, making sure it all was covered. The shirt was soon stained red, but it was doing an effective job of soaking up the blood. Gray froze it in place, using as little ice as possible.

"Gray-sama… don't worry about me. It's not going to work."

"Juvia, this will work. I'll get you to a hospital, to a healer, you'll be okay!" He scooped her up, one arm under her legs and the other wrapped around her back. "Stay strong. You'll be okay."

And he ran. Through the tunnels, and up into the forest. Getting up the ramp was hard while carrying another person, but somehow Gray managed it, turning his feet sideways as to not fall down in the mud. Running through the burnt out forest, he wished he'd paid more attention on the way through the first time. Taking many lucky guesses, he managed to reach the town of Cedar once again. Juvia hadn't spoke the whole time, hadn't even made a noise. He wondered if maybe she had actually died, but pushed this thought to the back of his head. He couldn't spend time dwelling on the fact that he could've accidentally killed one of his guild mates.

Gray knocked heavily on the door of their client's house, and the woman appeared within the minute. Seeing Juvia's lifeless body and Gray's panicked face, she held the door open for them, directing them into the kitchen. Her husband was sitting at the table, and immediately jumped up when Gray entered, Juvia still cradled in his arms.

"Set her down on the table. I'm a healer, son. Mind you, I haven't healed anyone in a while…" The old man rushed out of the room, returning with a large box a few moments later. "What happened?"

"She was stabbed by a Vulcan." Gray's voice was weak, and this was evident to the man.

"Perhaps you better sit outside. I don't think you're in any fit state to be of any help to me." He practically shoved Gray out the door, closing it loudly behind him.

Gray felt sick to his stomach. No matter how much Juvia insisted, it was _his_ fault. He hadn't been paying anywhere near enough attention to his surroundings, resulting in the fatal wound their clients were now dealing with. He was useless in these situations- he always panicked, without fail, and made a nuisance of himself by standing in the road and worrying. And he was worrying again now, just like any other time something had happened to someone from the guild. He decided he needed to do something. Gray wandered into the front room, where the old woman was seated.

"Excuse me."

"Hello. How are you doing? I know this would be tough for anyone…"

"Uh. Yeah," Gray answered, again proving his lack of finesse when it came to words. "Look, can I borrow your communication lacrima? I need to tell the guild what's happened."

"It's in the hall." The old woman turned away, leaving Gray to find the lacrima on his own. He managed to get a call in to the guild hall, which Mira picked up.

"Gray? Aren't you on a misson? I though you were due home tomorrow."

"Yeah, I am, but I'm coming today. Juvia's injured. Can you tell Porlyusica to be ready? This is really serious."

Mira's face fell. "Of course. I'll go personally. Get back safely, okay?" Gray nodded, his face stony and unreadable. He stepped away from the lacrima, leaning against the wall. He was too tired to be able to think straight, and the guilt from having hurt Juvia weighed heavily on his mind.

"Oi." Gray whipped around at the sound from the kitchen. "Her bleeding has stopped. You can take her home… but get her to a healer there as soon as possible." Gray nodded, pushing past the man to see Juvia. She was seated in a wheelchair, hands pressed to where Gray knew her wound was. Juvia forced her mouth into a smile.

"Juvia is sorry for worrying you, Gray-sama. She didn't think she would survive that at all. But this man is a very good healer."

"Thank you for helping us, sir," Gray said, turning to the man.

"No thanks needed; it was the least I could do, given the circumstances. Anyway, did you finish the job?"

"Yes," Gray answered with a sigh, finally allowing his mind to go back to the reason they were actually here. "Their leader is dead, as are most of the monsters. They shouldn't be a problem anymore. And if they are, call us down again."

The man thanked them once again, paying them kindly for their efforts. The two mages left the house considerably better off, Gray pushing Juvia's wheelchair despite her many protests that she could do it herself. They were thanked by many townspeople on their way to the train station, who had clearly learnt of their triumph over the Vulcan nest.

Juvia insisted she push the wheelchair onto the train so she could find a good spot to sit. Near the door, there was room for standing, and Juvia decided to sit there. Gray sat opposite her, in a seat on its own. The two didn't talk at all for the five-hour train journey- both of them blaming themselves for the incident. They were both right, in a way- if Juvia had been more confident in Gray's abilities, she wouldn't have moved, and the beast's claw wouldn't have struck her. But if Gray had been paying more attention, he could've told his partner to move back, thus preventing the situation from escalating as much as it had.

* * *

The pair was glad when the train finally pulled into Magnolia station. Lucy, Erza, Natsu and Mira-Jane were waiting on the platform, concerned looks painted painfully clearly on their faces. It took another look for Gray to see Gajeel leaning against the wall, and he swallowed hard. He knew that when he got off the train, he had a lot of explaining to do to the Iron Dragon Slayer.

Gray pushed Juvia in her wheelchair off the train, with people gladly allowing them to depart first. Erza and Lucy ambushed them as soon as both of Gray's feet touched the platform, rushing Juvia (who's face looked more panicked than Gray's when he saw her lying in her own blood) off to see Porlyusica, screaming some excuse at the mages left.

"Gray." Mira-Jane placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry," he blurted out, aiming the comment more at Gajeel than anyone else.

"No one is blaming you. At least, not yet," Natsu says, hitting him up the back of the head. "You'll need to explain what happened to gramps though. And he probably won't be happy."

"I just hope she's okay," Mira said, concerned about the fate of her guild mate.

"Juvia's tough," Gajeel interjected, "tougher than this one, at least. It looks like he's been crying," he insisted with a sneer.

"If you saw someone lying in a puddle of their own blood, I think you'd be pretty traumatised too," Gray spat, turning away from the crowd that had gathered to greet him. "I'm going back to the guild to explain to master what happened." He stalked off on his own, not looking back when Mira and Natsu called his name.

"This is your fault," Natsu said, referring to Gajeel. "If you hadn't turned up, he probably would've told us what happened, and we could've helped him!"

"Natsu, this is the time to be pointing fingers. Gajeel did nothing wrong."

"Hey, I'm just looking out for Juvia. We've been friends for ages. I'm not about to forget about her just because she's hanging about with Gray more than me. We're still friends, and I will defend her from the… that stripper!" Mira stifled a laugh at this comment, before turning serious again.

"We should hurry to the guild too. Master isn't in currently- he went ahead to see Porlyusica. We need to be there for damage control."

* * *

When the trio made it to the guild, Gray had already noted the lack of the master's presence. His head was lying on his arms in front of the bar- and with no one to serve him, he looked utterly depressed. Mira-Jane started to approach him cautiously, but both Natsu and Gajeel barged past her, clearly looking for a fight. Gajeel grabbed Gray by the front of the shirt, holding him at arm's length against one of the wooden pillars.

"You ever hurt Juvia again, and you won't live to see another day," he hissed into Gray's borderline apathetic face.

"Gajeel put him down!" Mira yelled, shocking everyone in the guild. Almost every member in the room had seen Mira-Jane when she was angry, and it wasn't a sight any of them were in a hurry to see again. Gajeel dropped Gray, who slumped on the floor, curling up slightly.

The master conveniently walked in at that moment, followed by Erza and Lucy. However, Juvia wasn't with them, and the guild members had to assume she was still with Porlyusica. The whole guild went silent, and the master cleared his throat.

"Gray Fullbuster, you have a lot of explaining to do."


End file.
